About Sheela Hunt

In addition to being a Real Estate Agent, Sheela Hunt has experience in various Real Estate related industries since 1990. She has served as a Property Appraiser, Mortgage Consultant and a Personal Banker for high wealth clients. During that time, Sheela received numerous recognition awards for achieving pride in customer excellence and consistently exceeding her sales goals.

Her passion for Real Estate and her sincere desire in helping people find their dream homes brought Sheela to Prudential California Realty John Aaroe division in Los Angeles. Her immediate success gave her the title of "rookie" of her office, representing buyers and sellers in Los Angeles' Westside areas and the San Fernando Valley. She continues her many relationships with agents and clients in those areas.

In 2008, Sheela joined the professional real estate team at Christies Great Estates affiliate Village Properties in Montecito. Village Properties is a locally owned brokerage firm doing business for the past 20 years and is a full service real estate firm with experts in Santa Barbara estate properties, relocation, residential, land, ranches, condominiums, commercial, senior housing, affordable housing and creative financing. They have offices in Santa Barbara, Montecito and Santa Ynez.

Sheela is enthusiastic about her Real Estate career and since summer of 2002, she has enjoyed working with her new client base here in Montecito and Santa Barbara. She continues to study the ever changing market and keeps informed about market trends and real estate industry related topics.

When she's not working, you can find her enjoying time with her family and friends, spending time at the beach and involving herself with her child's school PTA and fundraising for various nonprofit organizations such as Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, Dream Foundation, Storyteller and Village Properties Teacher's Fund.

The following is from an interview published November 21, 2003 in CASA magazine, Santa Barbara, page 23, Vol. 8, #33.

The exciting world of international import and export was the setting for Sheela Hunt's growing up years. Born in Hong Kong to parents from Bombay, India, the family was familiar with life in many countries. "We moved and traveled a lot! During this time I had the opportunity to see the world before I was 12. Those experiences likely sparked my interest in people and where they lived," Sheela shared.

Eventually settling in California, Sheela attended and graduated from Cal State Northridge, where she was very involved in sorority, business, and marketing clubs. "I got my real estate license immediately upon graduating, though I didn't go into real estate sales right away." Instead, Sheela started out as a home appraiser. That grew into being a mortgage loan agent, and then a personal banker for a high income clientele. She also dabbled in the entertainment and internet industries.

Sheela met her husband Mark when she was 19 and attending college. She began visiting the Santa Barbara area regularly over fifteen years ago, during their visits to Mark's family here in town. After a break from work to parent their daughter Sareena, Sheela re-entered the real estate field. Choosing to be a realtor she thought would give her a flexible work schedule. "Yeah right! I feel like I work all the time, but that's okay because I really enjoy what I'm doing." She joined the Prudential offices in Los Angeles. "Prudential is an internationally recognized company, with an amazing group of people behind the scenes. They really value their agents. I enjoy the many networking and educational opportunities I get. It allows me to further develop my skills and knowledge base in keeping up with the ever changing real estate market. The end result is for my clients. Prudential also supports ongoing community campaigns, such as schools and local non-profits, which is very important to me."

Sheela lived in Hong Kong and then in London until she moved to the United States. "My earlier experiences traveling help me better understand a culturally diverse client base," Sheela explained.

Years ago, Sheela and Mark made the move to live in Santa Barbara instead of always visiting. "We were thinking, wouldn't it be nice if Sareena could see more of her grandparents and great grandmother?," she recalled. "Now there are four generations of our family in Santa Barbara. We absolutely love living here."

Sareena, who is seven, attends Montecito Union School, and "is a good student, has a wonderful sense of humor, and is fun to be with", according to her proud mom. She also tolerates numerous "drive-bys and open houses" when out with her mom.

Sheela serves as the New Parent Chair at Montecito Union School, where she has enjoyed meeting new families, while assisting them in feeling comfortable with a new school, pairing them with existing families, and planning events to bring the families together - like beach days. "I know what it's like to move around and change schools. I guess that's why I wanted this role to help ensure a smooth transition for each student and their parents like we experienced when we came to MUS," Sheela explained. She is also involved in fundraising at the school, working on the annual carnival committee in silent auction, enlisting corporate sponsors and she volunteers in her daughter's classroom weekly. "What can I say, I like to get involved!"

When Sheela married Mark, she married into a family embedded in the Santa Barbara real estate market. Bill and Elsie Hunt, Mark's grandparents, were a real estate team in Santa Barbara from the mid 1960's to the mid 1980's.

When the family made the move to the area, Sheela made the move to Prudential in Montecito. The transition has been a positive one. "I've already established a wonderful new clientele up here while still maintaining my clients in LA."

Mark works in the film and television industry and is the son of John and Mary Hunt of Santa Barbara.